Penn State scandal not about football
Penn State University and the horrible Jerry Sandusky scandal are back in the news following last week’s NCAA blunder – lifting the sanctions that it imposed in 2012 and restoring Joe Paterno’s wins, reinstating him as the winningest college football coach of all time. The NCAA says that it decided to settle with Penn State because $60 million in fines that the school paid was locked up in the ongoing legal battle – ergo, not being distributed to victims of child abuse, as the money was intended to.
In an AP story, members of the Penn State cult were happy about the wins, yet not happy with the NCAA. The article stated that many people felt that the sanctions damaged Penn State’s reputation. It went on to say that Jay Paterno, Joe Pa’s son, said “the family’s fight against the NCAA was never about the wins, but rather about undoing the damage done by the NCAA and Penn State’s board of trustees, which agreed to the sanctions.”
At what point will die-hard Penn Staters take off their blindfolds and shift blame to Sandusky and those who helped him cover up his heinous crimes? The NCAA didn’t ruin Penn State’s reputation – Sandusky did. The NCAA and Penn State’s board of trustees caused absolutely no damage to the university or its beloved football program – but Sandusky did.
In fact, the blatant disregard for due legal process and disrespect for the victims by the Sanduskys, Paternos and the rest of the Happy Valley die-hards has done nothing to help the university’s reputation.
One of the top concerns of Paterno supporters now that his wins again total 409? Bringing back the bronze statue of the coach that was taken down in 2012.
This isn’t about wins. It isn’t about a coach’s legacy. And, for the millionth time, it’s not about football. It’s about the victims, who live with those horrific memories every day, and their recovery. It’s about making sure that something like this never happens again.
And until the cult dissolves and the people of Penn State begin living in the real world and not the Happy Valley bubble, it appears that no lessons have been learned.